Service Learning

This is for Service-Learners or those who wish to collect community service hours for school:
Thank you for choosing UPG for your Volunteerism and Service-Learning.
We guarantee that if you put in the time, YOU WILL change the world.

UPG has multiple Volunteer Opportunities every week that happen at several Locations.

We welcome Volunteers from any school or college. Please keep in mind that your school’s procedures may be different, and that you are responsible for record-keeping and reporting .

UPG has Award-Winning Service-Learning!

We’ve been selected by students as MDC Community Partner of the Year 4 times!
Providing this requires a lot of work by UPG.

This is how you do your part to connect with us.

Thanks in advance.

Guidelines for every Volunteer/Service-Learner

Step-By-Step Guide

1. School Contract / Registration: Does your school require a contract or a registration process before you start? Record keeping is your responsibility.
See GivePulse if you are at MDC, Barry or FIU. GivePulse
Otherwise, see your school’s policy and follow it. Use their recordkeeping, or use the UPG Log Sheet (bottom of this page). If you keep paper records, keep them in a ziplock to protect them from rain or sweat.

2. ​Make your UPG RESERVATIONS/RSVP Visit our Calendar
Each person must make their own RSVP so we know who is coming and how many.
Failure to register means that you won’t be advised regarding cancellation, weather, etc. 

3. ​Under 18? Have a parent sign a Volunteer Release. You only need to do this once.
Volunteer Release

4. ​Follow All UPG Instructions & Emails – Read the Calendar carefully. Watch for update emails we may send.
Sometimes we have to cancel or shift the project, so check your email the morning of the activity.

5. PREP: Be ready! Getting ready the night before makes your life stress free.  This includes navigation (see next).

Eat a real breakfast, or bring snacks to refuel (you will need the energy). 
Wear closed toed shoes or boots and a sun hat. 
Bring a large water bottle. UPG usually has chilled refills. 
There’s no bathroom on most sites, so plan accordingly.

Collect all the stuff you need for UPG together into a backpack or book bag:
* School S-L Paperwork + pen(if applicable)
* Large Water Bottle* Closed toed shoes or boots
* Sun hat
* Personal Gloves & Tools (if any)
* Dress for the weather and grubby work.
* Camera (to capture the experiences)
* Notebook (to write about your Service-Learning experience)This way, you don’t have to remember everything… just the UPG bag.

Collect all your gear, any paperwork, etc.

5b. Navigating & Arriving: We often work inside huge parks, and in non-public areas that are either locked or hard to find. When UPG provides a map and driving directions, use them (you can get lost without them, and google maps won’t help). 
The first time coming to a UPG site, give yourself 10 extra minutes to find it.
If our worksite is away from parking, we may provide walking instructions.
Arrive on time. Some sites involve locking a gate, and late arrivals may have a longer walk.

6. Come out and Volunteer! Be prepared to break a sweat and maybe get grubby. 
Expect to learn new skills and change the world a little. 
We’re looking forward to it!

7. Signing In:
When you arrive, ask a UPG Staffer to sign you in. This may be digital or on paper.
If a minor and this is your first time, be sure to give UPG your UPG Release and any other paperwork we are supposed to have.
Request your assignment to a UPG Project Team. If you have any special needs or health factors, please tell us. 
You only get credit for the time you are on-site and signed in.

8. Project Orientation, Training & Safety:
Your safety is important to all of us, and you must do your parts. 
Arrive on time so we can train you most effectively.
You’ll be assigned tasks within your capacity, and trained to do them safely.
Don’t use tools that UPG has not trained you on! 
Report unsafe conditions (or injuries) to your Team Leader or the UPG Supervisor.

9. Wrapping Up:  
Please complete your service when the group does. When we are locked in a long way from the gate, it works best to let the whole group out together.

a. We usually gather to do a group photo that shows our awesome team for the day. 

b. Collect all your tools, gloves, and materials, and return them to the truck or where they are stored. If you don’t know where stuff goes, ask us.  

c. Check for personal gear: water bottle, backpack, purse, etc.

10. Signing Out:
Do this on each day of service. 
Fill out your time sheet (digital or paper), and bring it to the UPG Staffer who is managing the signouts. If your school participates in GIVE PULSE please submit your request at that time.

11. Evaluation & Final Sign Off:
If you have an evaluation sheet or completion of service, we’ll complete it when you are done. Contact Jackie at [email protected] for this.

FOR GROUPS, FACULTY + DEPARTMENTS + SCHOOLS

UPG has Award-Winning Service-Learning! How can we serve you, your students or organization? We welcome contacts from Faculty and Departments, or from Schools, Colleges, Universities, and Corporate Groups. 

Group:
We can accommodate groups of varying sizes. Check the UPG Calendar, and then get in touch with [email protected] to inquire about your group. Every UPG Location has varying capacities, so scheduling in advance is required.
Due to the difficulty of scheduling many people at once for one specific date, you may find that it is easier to offer your group the whole UPG Calendar, or specific UPG Locations. See above. 

Faculty:
Note that UPG is NOT just for Science Majors! We may be able to structure a specific set of experiences to help your students gain insights into your course.

Departments:
We may be able to structure a set of experiential tracks to align with a series of courses.This allows a student to leverage experiences gained in a prior semester to build deeper understanding in the current one.
UPG also offers Internships for students from many Majors, from Graphic Design and Web Development to Sculpture, Urban Planning, Cartography, Health, Bio, Botany, Marine Science and many more. Ask!

Schools, Colleges & Universities :
UPG offers your students unique opportunities. They can learn about the real world we live in by working within it. They will learn that they have the ability – and the responsibility – to shape the world that they want to live in. They will “Be the Change”.

Please get in touch to set up a relationship which will help your students reach new heights.We will need you to help us overcome any obstacles.Together, we are building Urban Paradise!

Corporate Events:
Please visit this page.

INTERNSHIPS & OTHER OPPORTUNITIES

We hope that you will find UPG a rewarding experience! While others only study, you will be doing. These are paths to gain experience and resumes that set you above other candidates for colleges, grad schools, scholarships and jobs.

UPG Log Sheet